39 Weeks/Welcome Will!

Welcome Will!

Well, most of you know the story and details already, but Will is here and is actually already 3 weeks old! We made it to 39 weeks and 2 days, which was perfect - we were very ready for him to arrive by the time he made his debut. Instead of rewriting the entire labor story here, I thought I would just post the email that Jim sent out the day after Will's arrival. He did a wonderful job summarizing what turned out to be more of a labor experience than we had anticipated! Even though it was difficult, as it is for most, it was well worth it and we couldn't be happier. It feels great to be settling in at home with little Will.

Email from Jim sent on August 7th:

Family & Friends,
Will was born yesterday evening at nine. He's 7lbs, 7oz and 20 inches long. Both he and Melanie are happy, healthy and doing great.

His arrival was a bit of an ordeal. Mel started what I suppose amounts to very early labor on Tuesday night. We were told to come to the hospital at three on Wednesday morning. She wasn't ready and we were sent home at seven the next morning. The contractions during the next day were irregular but never really stopped. Mel, not wanting to get sent home from the hospital twice, wouldn't go back again until the next morning, again, at around three. When we were checked in, she was dilated 5 cm. (For my friends on this note who have no idea what this actually means: It's a lot.)

She labored through the day with an infection and fever that set in early in the afternoon. At around eight last night, the doctor decided that it was in Will and Melanie's best interests, for him to come out by c-section. He was out by nine. You could tell by looking at him that he was perfectly healthy. In spite of that, as a precaution because of the infection, he has had to spend his first 24 hours in the NICU for observation and he's moving out tonight. He's done great there and I've been able to spend a lot of time with him. He's definitely the biggest, meanest kid in the place.

The aftermath with Melanie was scary. During the surgery, she lost a little more blood than what's normal. Just over a liter. This, on top of infection; fever; sickness; labor; drugs; more drugs; and two and half sleepless days (something I did not realize was humanly possible), had her in a very bad way during the recovery. I don't want to overplay the aftermath, but I can say with absolute certainty that I have never been so terrified in my life. The nurses and doctors were wonderful, and after maybe a half an hour, it was clear that things were going to be fine. She's been resting since then and is doing well today. She was able to see Will last night on her way from recovery to the post-partum room.

I'm sorry to send a birth announcement e-mail that's a little bit more than just a birth announcement. I'm sure that it's more than a few folks were signed up for, but I think that most of you will want to know the whole saga--I'm still processing a lot of it myself, honestly.

In any event, it's all part of a story that has had a very happy ending, in spite of the few twists and turns. It has made me, anyway, even more appreciative of our new life and also the one that we had before. What an amazing thing.

Both Melanie and I are indescribably happy today.

Jim was absolutely wonderful during the entire experience and I don't know what I would have done without him. Not only was he taking good care of me, but he was taking care of our family members who were worrying and waiting anxiously in the waiting room!

Here's a little more background on the rest of our stay: Will spent the first 24 hours of his life in the NICU for close monitoring because of the infection I had. His dad was able to spend most of Friday traveling back and forth to spend time with him. My intention was to make it down to the NICU during the day to see our little guy, but it wasn't possible because I was still so sick from the infection. Friday was pretty much a blur to me. Will being in the NICU was difficult for us because we had planned for him to room in with us. I felt better knowing that Jim was able to spend time with him and other family members were as well. Jim spent most of Friday escorting our family members back and forth to see little Will. If you have a baby in the NICU, only one person can go in at a time with one of the parents. On top of that, every time you enter, you are required to wash your hands thoroughly for 3 minutes. Will was brought into our room that night at 12:30 and stayed with us for the remainder of our stay at the hospital. He was still being monitored by the NICU nurses so they were bringing him back and forth between the NICU and our room all day Saturday and Sunday. He had a little IV on his wrist until late Saturday night. He was administered antibiotics as a precaution because of the infection that I had. Although we didn't anticipate having our newborn stay in the NICU, it turned out to be a blessing because of the wonderful care he received from the NICU staff. They were very protective of him and took excellent care of him while we were there. We were both released on Sunday evening and were very ready to begin our life with him at home!

Here are some pictures from Will's first few days:

Our first moment as a family

Will getting checked out in the NICU

Jim and Will

7 lbs. 7 oz.

Ya Ya and Will

Grandad and Will

Grandpa and Will

Beejie and Will

Uncle Zach and Will

Aunt LuLu and Will

Holding Will for the first time the night he was born

Uncle Jeff and Will

Uncle Stephen and Will

Aunt Lindsey and Will

Family Photo

Tired already!

Uncle Jon David and Will

Aunt Sissy and Will

Glad to be home!

Enjoying a quiet moment at home!

This is what I spend most of my time doing. :)

Playing with Dad

It's pretty difficult for me to find the time right now to post often, but I'm going to try and do better! We have many more recent pictures of Will I am going to try and post soon. We have also had so many visitors and helpers and are so incredibly grateful for all of the help we have received. A special thank you to my mom and Jim's mom for spending the first 2 weeks at home with us helping us out! Check back soon for more updates...

38 Weeks

Well, there's not much to report for this week! I was convinced that Baby Will was coming last weekend but it's already a week later and nothing to report! We went back to the doctor on Thursday and she told us that everything was pretty much the same - I'm about 1 cm dilated and still 50% effaced. I have been so convinced this whole pregnancy that he was coming early and now I'm not sure what to do with myself! It's just a waiting game from this point on. It's hard going to bed every night wondering when he's coming! Dr. Merritt has told us that if he hasn't come by our due date (the 11th), we would be looking at an induction about a week past that. It's good to know that no matter what, we'll be meeting him in about 2 weeks or less.

Here's what's going on with Will this week:

Your baby has really plumped up. He weighs about 6.8 pounds and he's over 19 1/2 inches long (like a leek). He has a firm grasp, which you'll soon be able to test when you hold his hand for the first time! His organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb.

Wondering what color your baby's eyes will be? You may not be able to tell right away. If he's born with brown eyes, they'll likely stay brown. If he's born with steel gray or dark blue eyes, they may stay gray or blue or turn green, hazel, or brown by the time he's 9 months old. That's because a child's irises (the colored part of the eye) may gain more pigment in the months after he's born, but they usually won't get "lighter" or more blue. (Green, hazel, and brown eyes have more pigment than gray or blue eyes.)